Game in a nutshell: Yes Yogi, it's déjà vu all over again. Stephen Strasburg dominated in a game the Nationals' offense went bust. Even worse, Drew Storen returned to his late game struggles and Washington returned to the loss column after two straight high-scoring wins. Of course, because the bats went back to their scuffling form after scoring 23 runs on 26 hits in the previous two games, there was no room for error. Strasburg walked that tight rope like a Wallenda, shutting out the Brewers over seven innings on three hits with eight strikeouts before being removed for a pinch hitter. Meanwhile, Storen (2-2) was wobbly from the start, surrendering a leadoff single to open the eighth, followed by a stolen base and a walk. Then came Juan Francisco's two-run double, then came Martin Maldonado's one-out RBI double, then came Jeff Bianchi's run-scoring single. Then came the boos and plenty of them from the crowd of 24, 897 that hoped to see the Nationals (42-41) moved three games above .500 for the first time since May 18. Instead they witness Washington shutout for the ninth time this season.

Hitting lowlight: After busting out offensively in two wins including the series opener against Milwaukee, the NationalsRead more »

Nationals decide to help out their star, Harper, by making him change positions. Interesting that the FoF seems to have his name imprinted on 3rd base, but Harper is just a rotatable piece for Rizzo to move from outfield corner to center to corner as the whim comes….

His very presence created a problem. That is what caused us to lose Harper for a month. I think it is ridiculous to even discuss. Span is Nyjer without the attitude. In the grand scheme of baseball, Span is a big nothing. None of your children will remember him any more than they will remember the various and similar center fielders that the Nats keeps acquiring and none of them are memorable or really any good, and yet, we have an all time great talent who should be in center field, and yet was moved for no good reason.Either trade Span or put him in left. Harper is out there trying to learn a new position after an injury, so that we can accommodate Mr. Span. No other team but the Nats would put a mediocre journeyman with no All Star appearances over Bryce Harper.

Journeyman? Span has been on one team–The Twins, prior to here. The Nationals acquired Span to help Harper. If you think they care more about Span than Harper, I don't know what to tell you. LF is easier to play than CF. That's well known. Harper was mostly fine in LF, today was his only blunder there. Both of his injuries came when playing RF, probably the place he's played the least.Span has been playing great lately.

Strasburg's 2.24 ERA is now fifth in the National League, behind Kershaw, Harvey, Locke and Wainright.His brilliant season certainly deserves a spot on the All-Star team. I hope the NL skipper looks past the big guy's criminal run support.Watching the bats let down their ace again and again, you start to understand how the brilliant Bob Gibson lost 9 games with an incerdible 1.12 ERA.

RISP, come on, serious? You believe in that? Does Zimmerman try harder when there are runners in scoring position? How does he do that? Put his contacts in or something? If it is true, then we should be angry that he isn't doing better with runners out of scoring position.

Harper wouldn't have been in RF if he had been in CF which is the safest position to play. There are no corners and changes are gradual. Span should have been put in left and if he had a problem with it, he could have stayed in Minnesota, of course, they didn't want him anyway….

David Procter – you said that about Werth in Zim in the last thread. How about that GODAWFUL error Zim committed tonight? You can't blame that one on injury. Yes, it didn't hurt us this time but it sure could have. Just because he and Jayson are on hot streaks at the plate right now does not excuse their overal all up and down play this year. They are the vets getting paid the big bucks who should be leading by example. As I said in the game thread, something is fundamentally wrong with this team and its supposed veteran leadership seems to be a part of the problem. Not that I'm advocating they be shipped out, just that I wish SOMEONE would kick a few rear ends in that clubhouse, which is hard to do when you've been screwing up a lot yourself and are cashing eight figure checks anyway.

Why would you put Span in left or right which greatly diminishes his range? His range is the best thing about him. Span is not the problem, especially not right now when he's on fire at the plate and great as ever defensively.

Some nights you have it… Others you don't… 23 runs in 2 games or so is a pfb…. Hopefully, we can get on tomorrow and win the game…Btw – where is the spreadsheet to see who will be at games and add to the list, etc.

Funny how Minnesota let him go for pretty much nothing and many thought we gave away too much then. If you think he is different from Nyjer or any of the other multiple center fielders we have had, then crank out some data. He isn't. Nyjer's last year in Milwaukee was basically the same. Byrd has been vastly more valuable than Span this year. Go ahead. Believe what you want. Span will be out of the league in three or four years. Such a great star with his 0 home runs and inability to get on base.

How has Werth screwed up? He has 1 error and he's been fairly consistent all season, although especially on fire now. Zimmerman obviously has had errors. Todays was inexcusable, I'm not going to defend it. But it didn't end up hurting us and Ryan normally makes those plays, it's the throwing he struggles with.

Let's see how Drew bounces back. Like I said with a 1.6 stopwatch to homeplate and the predictable leg kick just makes him easy to steal on.I really believe the strategy has to change with Drew once a runner gets on base with less than 2 outs unless its a big lead.

"Funny how Minnesota let him go for pretty much nothing and many thought we gave away too much then."They got a top pitching prospect and both Baseball-America and Fangraphs called it their favorite acquisition of the offseason. One of them referred to it as a "steal." You're just rewriting history now and it's not worth arguing the point anymore.If you think Span will be out of the league in 3-4 years, I really don't know what to tell you.

If you think Span has better range than Harper, than you simply need a refresher course in baseball. Harper has far better range than Span. Span's arm is weak. Find someone in Minnesota who thought he deserved all those gold gloves he won. Oh wait, he never won any.

Span isn't going anywhere except maybe to the bench against lefty starters. His stats are very good against RH pitchers.I think people are just looking for reasons to complain and need to pick on someone.

As far as Span goes, I'm not going to dog on him. He hasn't quite lived up to expectations, but he hasn't been a disaster either. As for Harper, I hope Clip&Store is wrong but he may be on to something. That bunt attempt in a scoreless game coming about two seconds after FP got done saying the Nats probably needed to hit one out to score is telling.

Harper might be faster than Span (I don't even know if this is true but maybe), but Span takes brilliant routes to the ball. Harper has always struggled with that. Even last year. So many of Harper's diving grabs were because he took awful routes or got bad reads. Span does it all flawlessly. Maybe you think Span is useless because he makes it look so easy.

That error by RZ was very puzzling. Routine play. Lack of focus–unacceptable in my view. I can sort of forgive the throwing errors, if in fact his shoulder is healing, and he'll get past those. But what explains bobbling balls and the error tonight? Maybe it didn't cost, but maybe it did. Could Stras have gone the 8th inning if his pitch count were lower?

Harper looks fine, his timing is off. I feared because he hit the home run, everyone would think he was good to go. It takes time.He was running fine. He slid into second on a double play ball yesterday. He's not limping at all.Not everything is a big conspiracy people.

Now I see your beef. You are worried about injury, not defense. I was wondering your angle, because tge player your complaining about doesbt deserve it.Your complaint then is with Johnson and Rizzo not Span.

Span never should have been acquired. It is funny to see you all carrying Boswell's and Rizzo's water.Here is where we were told that Harper would at least be left in one place, which wasn't true, but also that he had no say, that Span and Werth were given the decision about who plays where.No wonder Harper was in no hurry to come back. Not only is he making a pittance compared to what the Nats pay Span, he is also 3rd on the totem pole in importance. He should look great in a Yankee's uniform someday while you guys tell your children how great Denard Span looked in center field.http://www.natsinsider.com/2013/02/harper-in-lf-werth-in-rf.html

NatsLady, that's a real good point. Almost forgot about that on the error and the effect on his pitch count.Drew has been "on" for many appearances in a row including last night. Hard to explain but he is what he is which is a mess once runners get on base. Just a reminder of what we saw in the post-season.

David Proctor – I can't count the number of times Jayson has had runners on base and either struck out or hit a weak grounder. Dude had 21 RBIs in 50 games prior to his 5 RBI night against a Brewers pitcher who was throwing batting practice. He's been the antithesis of clutch this year, and at a time when Harper was out that we desperately needed him to step up his game.

I have no problem with Span, per se, especially his defense. I have a problem with the entire deal.You don't take Willie Mays out of center field for Joe Smoe. You don't take Mickey Mantle out of center field for Joe Smoe. That is first of all. Bryce Harper is the best athlete on the field. Second, the whole premise of the deal made no sense in terms of buying runs when you are already one of the teams that gives up the fewest runs in baseball.Third, as said, Bryce should have been left in one place. If there were injuries, Mr. Span should have been the one shuffling over to right field.

You never know, but had Desmond not swng at a 2-0 runnibg fast ball that easily be called a ball instead swing at it get jammed and a kittle dinky hit to second results who knows what would happen on 3-0.Score in the first maybe the momentum of the last 2 days continue.

"David Proctor – I can't count the number of times Jayson has had runners on base and either struck out or hit a weak grounder."Okay, so i have some people telling me Zim's stats don't with RISP don't matter because there's no difference with RISP and another person lamenting Werth not hitting with RISP. Which is it? Werth spent much of the season in the 2 spot. There aren't a ton of RBI opportunities there (last night notwithstanding). Every batter is going to fail more often that not, with RISP or not. Nobody bats over .500. You're just remembering the bad times.

I guess that I imagined the thing about the Yankees' being Harper's favorite team growing up. I have never seen a team move a rising super star for some other player. Give me an example. I can't think of any. Rizzo came up with this all on his own. I don't particularly believe in defensive advanced stats, but fwiw, Harper's were better than Span's last year, and you have no idea who would look better out there, because Harper isn't out there.This franchise has treated Harper poorly from the beginning, not in terms of promotion. They love doing that, but the way that Davey and others have derided Harper's outfield play has often made me ill. We will see if that happens again, as Mr. Storen seems to think anything against the wall is an easy catch….

David the agenda was established a few messages back.he is blaming Span for Harper's injury.Span is fine. I wouldnt be surprised if got an extension.Then if Goodwin keeps improving he could be a trade chip.

"I guess that I imagined the thing about the Yankees' being Harper's favorite team growing up."How many players play for their favorite team growing up? Bryce will go where the money is and the Lerners are much richer than Steinbrenner ever was. If the Nats want to keep him, they will.Bryce was moved to LF to help Bryce. LF is easier than CF. That is fact. Rizzo wanted to get rid of Morse because his defense was such a liability. He wanted to move Harper to an easier OF position so Harper could focus on hitting. He acquired Span as a leadoff guy, something the Nats have wanted for eyars, and as a premium CF.

The Span acquisition will work out in the long run but Davey can't wait for Span to show he can hit lefty starters where I believe that's the change that needs to take place in benching Span against LHPs.

Harper is faster.Span better roue taker.Harper better arm.Span has surprised me with a few throws.My guess if you asked all 30 GMs who would play better defensively CF Harper or Span? Well over half would say Span.

Couple of things:WODL isn't trolling. He's just adamant. That's OK. I think a literate and passionate lawyer who is named for the longest-tenured Supreme Court justice is a pretty interesting guy to have around.I just happen to disagree on a few things. For instance, I think the Twins got a very significant return for Span in Alex Meyer. I think Span is a fine centerfielder and his offense might well improve once he's well versed on the NL pitchers.If esteemed WODL disagrees, that's OK. Dance and sing, do your thing.

David Procter – I'm all for not being overly negative, but your sunshine spin on every rational argument about what ails this team is hard to take. I'm not the one saying Span is useless and we never should have traded for him, or for that matter rehashing old history about what we should or should not have done last offseason. I'm basing my opinions on the crappy play I see on the field as often as not. With a lately VERY shaky Detwiler and a raw rookie pitching the next two dayss against a very hard hitting club, this team should be thankful if it gets out of this series with a split. That isn't progress–it's same 'ol, same 'ol.

Maybe if we could find a few more great fielders with no power and low on base percentage like Span, then we would really have something. I find that hilarious when talking about a team ranked 14th in the NL in offense.Only Nats fans are wowed by a defensive centerfielder who can't hit when they lose every game Strasburg pitches 1-0 or 2-1.14th in the NL in hitting, but hey, we look good in the outfield and if Bryce wants to pout about it too bad. Span is a better outfielder than Bryce Harper and he always will be because he has what it takes to be a great outfielder and Harper doesn't have whatever that is, apparently, and he never will. He belongs anywhere, right or left, doesn't matter. Just shunt him somewhere and then bellow when he misses a fly ball.

Yeah Ghost – that is my only issue with Span… He can't hit lefties… I'm hoping he improves on this soon…But I wouldn't be adversed to changing the batting order when playing against lefties and still having Span in the game…Defense is great… Seriously.

Manassas Nats' Fan said… Until Drew decides to hold runners effectively his best strategy is real simple: NO BASE RUNNERS. Cant steal if not no one is on. July 02, 2013 11:18 PM That's what I've written twice tonight so obviously I agree with what you said.

Sigh, WODL. Are you serious right now?For one, Span's career numbers are fine. He's struggled…Rizzo could not have anticipated that. Span is hitting and getting on base right now, but of course, it' still all his fault. The plan all along was to have Harper to play a corner outfield position…even prior to last year. And I'm not bellowing that he missed the fly ball, I'm defending him. But FYI, Harper missed plenty of fly balls in CF, you just don't remember those last year. It happened, I promise you, I remember a few.

Harper can be a great center fielder, but not when you don't let him play it. I didn't like that but okay. But then they started shifting Harper back and forth and none you said jack. You blamed it on him. The whole premise was that they were going to make things easy on him and then they say Werth decides who plays where? It is in that article.I like Werth, but that is nonsense. Find me where Mickey Mantle or Joe Dimaggio or Barry Bonds got treated like that. I guarantee you that Harper and his family are pissed. How do I know? Because reporters asked them and they said they weren't pissed.It is like the FISA judge who said that he wan't a rubber stamp. Dude, didn't you learn anything from Richard Nixon? Anyone who says that he is not a rubber stamp doth protest too much….

Can we forget Morse, ever??? He is on the DL from a baserunning injury. He has missed 30 games already, and when he wasn't on the DL, he had to be platooned at 1B because he couldn't handle the outfield. When he was in the outfield (prior to his current injury) his fielding was putrid. You are living in a fantasy world if you think Morse would be an asset to this team.

WDOL — Could you help me out with an apples to apples comparison of fielding stats? I'm looking at Baseball Reference – I know that Mr. Span has no errors recorded for in the 78 games he's appeared in this season for the Nats, and has committed 11 over six professional seasons in 525 games. How is similar is this to Nook Logan, who played center field for the Nats, and committed 11 errors over four professional seasons in 306 games, or Brad Wilkerson, who recorded 10 errors in 232 games in center field over seven professional seasons?

Just got home to read what I feel are ridiculous comments about Span. I am with Manassas on this in that I don't do a lot of stat research but what I have seen this year is some of the finest play in CF I have seen in watching DC baseball since 1950. He glides to the ball, makes excellent reads, and I have not seen one error. His arm is below ave. but I have no problem with that. Why one poster is thinking he is the problem is totally beyond me. Harper is 20 years old, he is still learning his craft. He made an error today that was not charged but its not the end of the world. I am a lot more concerned about Storen because I honestly thought he would be our closer in two years. I have still not heard anyone comment on how the game totally slows to a snails pace when he enters the game. I have to think it affects everyone on the defense when they are standing around waiting for him to throw the damn ball. I would hate to be the catcher because I just know I will never throw out any baserunner with Drew on the mound. Tomorrow is another day and lets hope Det will return to form but I am slowly but surely looking at just enjoying the game and not trying to convince myself we are something other than an average team. Man did I set my expectations way too high.Go Nats!!

It depends on the team. That is like the old thing whether you want Clete Boyer or Eddie Matthews at 3rd. This team did not need a slap hitting center fielder. Regardless, the implementation of this, whether it is Johnson or Rizzo is pathetic. Harper should have been left in left and Werth and Bernadina et al should have been moving about. We lost a third of the season of our best player and it did not have to happen. There is no excuse for not having a plan at the beginning of the seaon.

Harper is the best baseball player.Span is tge best fielder.They are still working on establishing a positionYou just need patience. Lots of outfielders move around, but generally best fielder gets to centerfield

SJM, Span has a 2 year contract, first of all. If his second half is not better than his first, he might be gone sooner. He can't hit lefties at all. He can't steal bases. His baserunning w.a.r. is close to zero. He has a poor arm. He doesn't seem to coordinate his position all that well with his fellow outfielder. Bernadian's defensive w.a.r. is almost as good.If they think Span is some great shakes, then they should have at least said Harper is playing left field and he ain't moving. He is too valuable. They did not do that. They humiliated him by moving him all over the outfield, 3 years from being a catcher but you all think that is fine. Move him anywhere. Put him back at catcher. It is all good. What a whiner. Span and Werth are veterans making millions and millions of dollars. Harper makes what Obama makes.

god knows I should never argue with WODL but when Mantle came up they did NOT play him in CF, in fact he was injured while playing right field when Dimaggio called him off a ball that was clearly Mantle's to field. So Mantle was treated poorly in his early years. Just stop. There are plenty of other negatives on this team and Span clearly is not one of them.

Funny. The Angels moved Trout from CF to LF, back to CF and back to LF and back to CF again (because of injury). Nobody complaining about that. Are the Angels ruining Trout's career WODL? Is Trout destined to become a Yankee? Lol…

If Matt Kemp was playing LF instead of CF would he have had those costly leg injuries and other ailments?It was the correct move by Rizzo to move his best player to corner OF. If you know me I'm also not a Rizzo apologist. He screwed up on his bench assembly, 5th starter, and top of the bullpen, but he didn't screw up on this. Heck, Rizzo probably screwed up on the 2 year deal for LaRoche but that's a discussion for another day.

Now for something completely different:Drew Ward is the 18-year-old power hitting prospect the Nats signed out of a tiny Oklahoma high school with fewer than 100 students.Ward is already at work. He's batting third for the Nats in the Gulf Coast League. In his first nine games he's hitting .296 with 3 doubles.He's interesting because he has pop and time to develop.

Bryce is making $9 million this year.I will make this simple:Did Bryce move to left field and stay there?No.Why not?Was that a good choice to be moving a 2nd year guy all around the outfield when Rizzo said the Span acquisition was suppose to help Bryce "relax"?

You are the one who said quote facts. At least be accurate yourself. We are 13th in hitting.Plan on checking where Nabtle started. I think he moved to center after DiNaggio retired. I do believe they over lapped

If you are a lawyer, I think you need to take a recess to regroup – Don't you just hate it when facts get in the way of a good argument?1. Harpers salary2. Mike Trout3. Kemp4. Span with 0 errors this seasonetc etc etc

Yes, Harper is making 2 mil this season. 9.9 over the course of his contract. Also consider the signing bonus he already received. Regardless, that's a far cry from the 500,000 you said. 4x more is significant.Also, veterans should absolutely be paid more than rookies. Veterans have shown they can play–young players have not.

Cause we went up yesterday. And is the new stat after our 0 today? Of course, daily stats in baseball are worth essentially zero. This team has got to get its personalities squared out. Never in the history of baseball has a player of Bryce Harper's ability been made to move back and forth between positions to accommodate a player of Span's mediocre talents. You won't find it. Try if you can.You leave a talent in one place and let him develop. Washington moves Harper from center to left to right to left to wherever and then they badmouth his defensive play. His defensive w.a.r. was outstanding last year but people come on here and moan about some ball he missed while Ryan Zimmerman makes an error every single game and Drew Storen….

I sort of miss interacting with all you imaginary friends. I haven't been really active on here the last couple weeks, for one reason or another, but I do take a look from time to time.But it's threads like this one that really cause me to make other choices about what I do with my Interwebz time. This whole "get rid of Span" thing is just beyond the pale.Really.

Mannasas – read my post earlier – Mantle started in RF because Dimaggio was in his final year and demanded to play CF. Big reason Mantle hurt his knee was a simple pop fly to right center that was clearly Mick's but Joe called him off at the last minute and in veering away he caught his foot on a sprinkler and tore up his knee. He was never 100% again. Mantle did not play CF until after JD retired, and actually played some first base later in his career when his knees were pretty much gone.

"This team has got to get its personalities squared out. Never in the history of baseball has a player of Bryce Harper's ability been made to move back and forth between positions to accommodate a player of Span's mediocre talents. You won't find it. Try if you can."Trout-Bourjos. Simple.

Wow… After that loss nearly 80 posts are about Span? It's Span's fault Harper ran into the wall in LA? Oh, right, he did it by stealing the only safe, walless part of the outfield. Hey, at least he can still steal something, even if it's not bases, amirite?! Lemme guess: Span yelled "boo!" causing Harper to drop that fly ball. Right?Good stuff in here tonight. Really.

MNF, I actually had Nats on TV and Bailey on my Android.Davey has an issue with most of his bullpen on holding runners. Both Klip and Storen are slow to the plate. Most runners can steal on a pitcher that is slow to the plate and as predictable as Storen. Even Yadier Molina stole on Storen in the playoffs.

I believe Harper will be a hall of fame left fielder.There it is settled, that will be his primary position.Glad you didn't watch Pete Rose who played everywhere, sibce you think people have to play only in pne position.

Last time I checked people on here were complaining PLENTY about Ryan Zimmerman's errors and Drew Storen's pitching–and most people were very forgiving of Harper being a trifle wall-shy (if he even is wall-shy). But don't let facts interfere with the narrative.

Span has shown he can play way better than Harper. Maybe Harper needs some time in Syracuse. Werth too is better as a veteran. Veterans deserve far, far more money regardless of who the people come to watch in the games.I am glad that Harper and Strasburg got their huge bonuses. And based on the line of reasoning here, neither should do anything to endanger their careers until they are eligible for the big money. Why rush back when you are Trout and making $500,000?

I was ready for bed a long time ago and will leave now but to me, the big reason for this loss is of course not Span, not Harper playing lf, but the combination of poor hitting once again and Drew Storen having a bad outing. tomorrow is another dayGo Nats!!

Do you not see how someone has proven they can play deserves money over someone who hasn't? Do you know the number of draft picks that bust? Look at the NFL, where guys used to be guaranteed $50 million out the gate and would bust regularly. You're simply being illogical, WODL. And back to the $500,000 number. Incredible.

Y'know Harper was a catcher originally. Kinda hard to run into a wall from that position. Moving Harper to the outfield was a humiliating show of disrespect to the kid that endangered his life. Denard Span is clearly just a pawn in this sinister game.

Mantle played right his first year and then took center the next year when Dimaggio retired, in spite of being a better fielder. I hardly think anyone would complain about Harper deferring to Ken Griffey, Jr. Denard Span is a blip on baseball history, an inkspot, an answer to a trivia question that you will be playing with your kids. IIf I am wrong, and if he is so great, just think what we could get for him if we traded him? Cliff Lee, maybe? I am sure that 30 gm's around baseball are maneuvering as we speak to acquire Denard Span to take them to World Series glory….

Span didn't do ANYTHING wrong tonight. He got two hits, including two LEAD-OFF hits, and he snagged a couple of difficult catches… but, somehow, Span breathing air in Washington DC caused Harper to 0 for 4 and misplay a fly ball. You do understand that, right?.

It's pretty hilarious, Ghost! Kinda fun to follow the thread to its natural, illogical extreme. I should probably just try to go to sleep, though. Gotta long weekend of real life fun on deck for tomorrow!

But maybe I should pipe down, because if 30 general managers are champing at the bits to acquire Denard Span, then maybe we can make a deal. And you know, Drew Storen has really been good the last 3 weeks or so. Maybe a package deal based on what they have done the last 3 weeks. Just disregard the earlier part of the season. Who would be good return value?You all know that no contender wants Span as a center fielder. Storen, maybe you could sell as needing a chance of locale. I get tired of all the badmouthing of Morse. He was a mensch. Plenty of teams have done well with guys like that playing the field. I know of one team that won 98 games with him in the outfield.

Manassas Nats' Fan said…His ERA has been way toovhigh all season, was good for the last 3 weeks and bsrfed it all back tonight.=====I just chalked it up to a bad game by inning by Storen… Didnt help our bats were sleep but Storen seemed like he was off from the get go… I actually thought DJ should have gotten him after the walk… Storen seems to panic when people get on base..

I never understand the defense to a player having a poor season so far being, "he got two hits today."How does that work?We have had 2 changes in the line-up. One was an upgrade with Rendon coming in. The other was the shifting of Harper and dealing Morse.So, either we are unlucky or we have been injuried or we are worse, or all of the above. All I know was I signed up to watch a season of Harper and I wanted him healthy. Has he been healthy? No, he has not, and the Nats have been trying to force him to return before he was ready to comeback. Tonight, according to some, Storen tried to show up Harper from the mound. Storen, Mr. Veteran from Stanford–that can't be true, one hopes….

Manassas Nats' Fan – I continue to fail to understand the commitment to established players who aren't getting the job done. Right now, Krol is obviously a better relief pitcher than Storen, yet they kept throwing the latter in key situations because "that's the way the bullpen is set up." Storen has had half a season now to demonstrate that he is not a major liability to this team's playoff chances. Had he merely given up a couple of runs tonight I'd forgive him, but his appalling failure to hold runners on belies the real truth about what a mess he currently is, even after a good run of outings. If they keep him as a setup guy, mark my words he'll blow a key game down the stretch–assuming the Nats manage to get back in the race.Unfortunately, I also saw where Garcia got lit up at Syracuse tonight, so he may not yet be ready for promotion after all.

Doesn't Span have like 7 doubles and 2 triples over the last 15 games or something?He really needs to stop writing down this team.Anyway, back in the land of grounded saliency, NatsLady, I agree 100% that sans RZim's error Stras very well may have pitched the 8th and our final two rounds of at bats may have had a very different demeanor.

"No, he has not, and the Nats have been trying to force him to return before he was ready to comeback."Pure speculation. Harper brought himself back too soon the first time. He missed 31 games. He looks fine now. Just because he had an 0-fer doesn't mean he's hurt. He's running, sliding, etc. He did fine on rehab assignment too.This might be my favorite thread on here because all logic has gone completely out the window. It's hilarious.

In a free market, people are paid according to their worth, Mr. Proctor. In baseball, Edwin Jackson and Dan Haren make all the money apparently since both of them made more than any of our other starters., but you seem fine with that. I am not and I think it damages the game.

"In a free market, people are paid according to their worth, Mr. Proctor."And when Harper, Trout or any other rookie signed their contract, there was no way to know what they were worth. None whatsoever. You could guess, and getting $10 million on a guess isn't half bad. There's no track record there for those guys. When Harper and Trout and Machado etc. have established themselves for a few years, they will get paid bigtime. This is the way it works in MLB and the way it works in business. If this is going over your head, I'm not sure what to say to you.

"Only Nats fans are wowed by a defensive centerfielder who can't hit when they lose every game Strasburg pitches 1-0 or 2-1."Span was 2 for 5 tonight. He had fully one quarter of the team's 8 hits. Also made several great plays in center field.WODL hates Denard Span and he hates Nyjer Morgan too. Take a look at those two players and ask yourself what they have in common besides both being center fielders. That will tell you everything you need to know about WODL.

WODL – "In a free market, people are paid according to their worth…"That's a much different argument and completely irrelevant to any discussion of the Nats' current failures since they have to play by the same rules as everybody else. Because of the system Zim, especially, was UNDERPAID his first few seasons compared to his value as a player. I don't begrudge him now getting the big bucks. I just want him to play better.

Yeah that is real fair and should get you banned. The Nats only have one African-American player, and for some reason, always only have one. That is not my fault. Willie Mays and Hank Aaron and Joe Morgan are my boyhood idols, as is Maury Wills from D.C., and Frank Robinson, whom I don't remember ever getting shifted over ever. Lou Brock either.

The Nationals have two black players (although Bernadina isn't African-American I suppose). And I'm honestly not sure what Desi is exactly, but half I assume.This is irrelevant anyway and it was inappropriate for d'grviii to say.

Bernadina is from the Dutch islands near South America. I think he speaks Dutch. I lived in Brazil and you have Suriname and many Dutch Islands off the coast of South American where baseball is getting popular.

Meh – I honestly think (and hope that) it's just WODL didnt like the Span signing becuz he doesn't feel, in his opinion, that Span is contributing on the field to the way that he likes… Not becuz of his skin color….I refuse to believe that… WODL is entitled to his opinion regardless how many of us disagree with him… But I just don't think it's based on skin color…. I mean he platooned Berny to start, when and I love Berny, and he isn't an every day type player…

I will say that I can see how someone could think my opinions might be racist. I think Denard seems to be doing all he can in the field–he didn't make Rizzo do this trade– and if he puts my baseball knowledge to shame and hits .330 the rest of the way with several homers, I will meet anyway and eat humble pie.I just think this trade had a weird vibe from the beginning and that is not Span's fault. Rizzo was just trying too hard, I think. I would love to see some more Black players on the Nats especially someone of the caliber of a Jimmy Rollins or Prince Fielder. It just hasn't happened yet, but I am sure it will.

Yeah, it is like saying I am not a rubber stamp. And I do like a lot of white players, too. Don Drysdale. Johnny Bench. Ron Guidry. But on the other hand, I even liked Bob Gibson and everyone says that he was an asshole. I even voted for Obama, but now I am just pandering….

I want to know where all the "Corey Kluber is an above average pitcher" kool-aid drinkers are tonight. I guess Peralta must be an above average pitcher, as well. Just have to tip your cap.Kluber's last 3 starts: 15 IP, 13 ER, 23 H (I would hate to see what an average pitcher looks like). Span is a fine CF, but needs to hit 8th or 9th in the lineup…he is just not sparking this offense as a lead-off guy. Not all of his fault, but when you have zero power, you better be getting on base near .375 of the time and be able to steal 30-40 bases. He is on pace for a .320 OBP and 15 SB…there are bench guys all over baseball that can do that. Also, I think Storen is pretty close to done. Once Matheus is back, I have to believe he falls behind Clippard, Krol and him. Maybe even Stammen. He needs a change of scenery.

If we had had Harper for every game this year, minus a couple for rest, our record would probably be 2 to 3 wins better. That is a separate question from where he plays. Just leave him somewhere. And I highly doubt that we we see him moved again. Maybe I am wrong but I will be shocked if I see him in right field again.That is completely different from the other issue with respect to whether we would be better off with Span or not. I think on a good hitting team, you would be better off with Span. We thought that we might be a good hitting team, but we erred. On a poor hitting team with excellent pitching, you need more pop in the line-up.

The strange thing about Span is that his doubles and triples have been going to waste because he is leading off, but hasn't gotten on much in the first. Some of that might be a fluke, but those types of hits are much more valuable for a 7th or 8th hitter because you have guys on base in front of you much more.Span was supposed to get on base and help us manufacture runs. He hasn't bunted for many hits. His speed down to first is good but not spectacular. 8 stolen bases isn't going to transform any team. At the least, we need him to walk, cut down on his strike-outs, take hits by pitch when possible and get singles. His doubles and triples are up but everything else is down. He even used to have power that you had to respect and that is gone too. He does seems to be going with the pitch lately so maybe that will be a harbinger of good things. He obviously has been doing better lately but for some strange reason seems to do better at home in general and we have been at home lately. Anyone who wants to look at it. Tell me what you think we need from a lead-off hitter for him to be a success. What on base percentage? What slugging? What kind of attitude on the bases? It just seems that very few great teams have guys leading off who struggle to get on base, especially if they have no power.

The Nats had ZERO extra base hits tonight, and pretty much didn't even threaten to score after the first inning and before Storen came in. To me, by the 8th inning, Storen's meltdown felt almost incidental paired with a lifeless home team offense, giving the visitors all the momentum to jump on him. This year, it just seems about every third game or so, the entire Nats hitting unit collapses in a listless fog, where any A Ball Pitcher can wipe them out without trouble. After getting rid of Espinosa, I can't put a finger on any one individual as the issue, just some awful group mentality chronically sets in..Personally, I found it more entertaining watching the hapless team a few years back when they had Dunn and Willingham swatting the ball fairly consistently (despite hideous pitching, fielding, and 100+ season losses). The current crop consistently underachieves, and that's just deflating.

I can just see WODL and DP in debate club. Not sure who would win. This thread was a great read. Weird but great. I find myself agreeing with WODL in regards to Span. He's no lead off…at least not a good one for reasons cited over and over…but I like him as a left bat and a good OFer. I too want Bryce in center. Span needs to bat 8th and sit vs lhp. Rendon or Werth to lead. I guarantee that will win more games. Well, I "think" it will